Page 8 - MAY 2020 Barbecue News Magazine

BBQ HERO TRIBUTES
The BBQ Meal Train is comprised of award-winning pitmasters, BBQ caterers, backyard enthusiasts and friends on Long Island, NY. There is a long-standing tradition of commu- nity involvement for the BBQ com- munity in this area that extends from smoking up some delicious food for 2000 guests at the New York VA to providing hundreds of huge Thanks- giving meals for families dealing with breast cancer.
In response to the heroic efforts of healthcare workers and the circum- stances under which they have been asked to perform, Will Breakstone of Willie B’s BBQ Catering began mak- ing and delivering food to Southside Hospital in Islip, NY. Hoping to ex- pand his efforts, he began recruiting others from the pool of regulars that assist at the charity events.
The BBQ Meal Train was born.
A Facebook group page was created and was soon popu- lated by people that were look- ing for some way to give back to those that were working tirelessly and at significant risk to support their community. The general feeling was that if health-care professionals and support staff were willing to go to such great lengths for all of us then the least we could do is make sure they are well fed.
Members of the community would smoke what they hap- pened to have on hand, some chicken here, some ribs there
and a pork shoulder when possible. If they weren’t able to smoke it, Will would come pick it up and smoke it himself. People that wanted to par- ticipate but weren’t local would do- nate money to pay for ingredients, paper plates and knives and forks.
Food provided is exactly what you would expect from BBQ folks. The delicious aromas of pulled pork, ribs and chicken welcome doctors, nurses, aids and staff when they enter their breakrooms, but those centerpieces are surrounded by baked beans, potato salads, cakes, pies and other sides or desserts. The BBQ community is the most welcom- ing and generous imaginable and they are not just willing, but eager to give back.
The scope of the deliveries has in- creased. The BBQ Meal Train is now doing both lunch and dinners as well
as drop-offs with EMT’s. Within the next few weeks there will be a large cook in the parking lot of another Long Is- land hospital on a custom Shirley Fabrication rig. If there is enough support from the community, food will also be delivered to centers for home- less veterans and other health- care facilities, such as dialysis centers.
Contacts: Will Breakstone, rb- snwings1@yahoo.com, 631 678 1726 or Eric Devlin, 631 965 7068, events@bbq- brethren.net
BarbecueNews.com - 8
MAY 2020